Cotton-chopper.



' N0. 706,889. Patented Aug. l2, |902.-

` J. T. BYET.

comm cHoPPEn.

(Appximion mod oet. 18. 1901.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

l vi.. n J9 will!!! Winans@ i TN: Noms verras oo. Puoduwo., msummou, n. c.

Patented Aug. s2, |902.

J. T. BOYET. COTTON SHOPPER.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1901.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

Usuari-3D TTES .affrnN OFFICES .IOIIN T. BOYET, OF LEWISBURG, TENNESSEE.

\ CGTTONMCHUPPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 706,889, dated August 12, 1902.

Application filed October 18, 1901l Serial No. 79,170. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, JOHN T. BOYET, a citizen of the United States, :residing at Lewisburg, in the county of Marshall and State Vof Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cotton- Choppers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertaius to make and use the same.

This invention relates to cotton-choppers; and the purpose of the same is to provide a simple and effective organization of elements for operating and adjusting chopping-knives or hoes and to have such adjustment independent of their reciprocal movement.

The invention consists in the construction and arrangement of the several parts, which will be more fully hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cotton-chopper embodying the features of the invention. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail perspective view of the mechanism for adjusting the chopping devices or hoes. Fig. 4t is a section, showing the parts mainly in elevation, taken in the plane of the line 4 t of Fig. 2 and looking in the direction of the arrows. Fig. 5 is a detail elevation of the shaft for operating the chopping devices or hoes.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to indicate corresponding parts in the several views.

The numeral 1 designates the frame of' the improved machine, which will include such beams and correlative parts in vertical and horizontal positions as are necessary in effecting a strong and durable structure and in providing for the disposition of various mechanisms and devices, which will lbe more fully hereinafter explained, and in the subsequent description the parts of the frame will only be referred to as it becomes necessary to set forth the position and relation of the interacting or related devices.

The frame 1 is provided with a suitable tongue or draft-pole 2 and also with groundwheels 3. It willbe understood that the draftpole 2 will be braced in any suitable and necessary manner and the ground-wheels 3 run loose on an axle 4, secured to the under central portion of the frame. The axle is rotatably secured to the frame, and keyed thereon or otherwise immovably fastened thereto are ratchet-wheels 5, and on a part of each of the wheels is a detent or pawl 6, the said detents or pawls engaging the ratchet-wheels and so disposed that when the machine is forwardly propelled the axle will be rotated; but when the machine is moved rearwardly the wheels 3 turn loosely on the axle and the detents or pawls slip around on the ratchetwheels. On the axle 4 a sprocket-wheel 7 is secured, and surrounding the same is a chain belt S, which also engages a sprocket-wheel 9, fast on a shaft 10, journaled on the top portion of the frame. A friction-disk 11 is also secured to the shaft 10, and operatively bearing thereagainst is a smaller friction-disk 12, disposed in' a plane at right angles to the disk 11 and held on the forward end of a shaft 13, extending longitudinally over the upper rears portion 0f the frame and journaled in boxes 14 and 15, the forward box 15 being slidable transverselyl on the upper portion of the frame and having a spring 16, secured thereto and to a shiftinglever 17, which is fulcru med on a part of the upper portion of the frame in advance of the location of the box 15, and has its rear extremity adj ustable. by means of upstanding pins or studs 18, so that the variation in position of the said lever may be positively maintained. In adjusting the shaft 13 the shifting-lever 17 is moved in opposite transverse directions, and when operated to draw thefriction-disk 12 against the friction-disk 11 the pull on the slidable box 15 is exerted through the spring 16, and by this means the disk 12 has a yielding contact with the disk 11. To shift the box 15, the lever 17 is moved in opposite directions, as previously set forth, and when moved to the right as considered from the rear end of the machine the pull is exerted through the spring 16 to bring the disk 12 into contact with the disk 11.

moved to the left to disengage the disk, the

When

ICO

force applied to the lever 17 is exertedv through the spring 16 to the box to move the latter to the left, and thereby throw the disk 12 out of engagement with the disk 11.

The shaft 13 has a crank 19 at an intermediate point therein, and to the rear end of said shaft,projecting rearwardly from the rear end of the frame of the machine, a crank-arm 20 is secured. Attached to the crank 19 and crank-arm 2O are the inner ends of the handles of reciprocating bars 2l of chopping devices or hoes 22 on the outer ends of said handles or bars, the latter being projected beyond one side of the rear portion of the frame a suitable distance to effectively carry on the chopping` operation and alternately laterally projected and caused to recede owing to the crank connections therefor. It will be seen that the chopping devices or hoes 22 have a downward thrust imparted thereto to cause the same to penetrate the ground over which the machine is propelled or to chop the cotton or cotton stalks or stubs, and at times, as will be apparent, it will be necessary to throw the chopping devices or hoes out of operative engagementfrom theground surface,and for this purpose mechanism is provided, as follows: On the rear portion of one side of the frame is a longitudinal support 23, having front and rear ends formed with longitudinally-extending vertically-disposed slots 24,which open out through the said ends and receive verticallyarranged holders or posts 25, vertically slidable inthe said slots 24 and having upper bifurcated heads 26, terminating at intermediate shoulders 27, which are adapted to bear on the upper edge of the support 23 to limit the downward movement of the holders. Below theshoulders the holders are reduced, as at 28, to move freely in the slots 24, and the lower en ds of the said holders are formed with stop flanges or guards 29 to limit the vertical adjustment of the said holders. The handles or bars 21 extend through the upper bifurcated heads 26 of the holders, and when the i latter are elevated a sufficient distance the chopping devices or hoes 22 will be raised to clear the ground surface, and at the same time the shaft 13 will be shifted to disengage the disk 12 from the disk 11 by means heretofore explained. The holders are adjusted by means of rods 30 and 31, having their terminals secured in the heads of the said holders and extended transversely through opposite upstanding fulcrums 32, carried by a crossbar 337 as clearly shown by Fig. 3, the rear end of the rod 30 having a grip-loop 34, and the rear end of the rod 31 formed with an eye 35, to which is movably attached the front extremity of a lever 36, mounted in an upstanding fulcrum-support 37 and having its rear terminal formed into a handle 38 and located adjacent to the grip-loop 34, both the gripvloop 34 and handle 3S being within convenient reaching distance of a drivers or operators seat 39, extending rearwardly from the frame of the machine. By bearing down on the rods 30 and 31, applying pressure directly to the grip-loop 34, and turning the lever 36 in the proper direction until the eye on the said lever binds against the eye 35 at the rear end of the rod 31 the holders will be raised.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the operation of the machine is very simple, and, moreover, the chopping devices or hoes can be regularly actuated to cause them to perform their functions.

To prevent the shaft 13 from sliding longitudinally, it has intermediate collars 40,which engage a bracket-arm 41; but said parts do not interfere with the adjustment of the shaft, as the latter is loose enough to have sufcient play at its forward end to disengage the disk 12 from the disk 1l.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is'claimed as new is- 1. In a cotton-chopper, the combination with an axle and driving-wheels, of a frame mount-ed on said axle, a gear-wheel on the axle, afshaft located above the axle and having a gear-wheel fixed thereon, an operative device connecting the said gear-wheels, a friction-disk on the inner end of the second shaft, a crank -shaft loosely mounted in suitable bearings, the forward bearing being slidable, a friction-disk on the forward end of said crank-shaft, a series of choppers connected to said crank-shaft, adjustable holders for the choppers, means for adjusting the said holders, and means for shifting the crank-shaft to throw the disk thereof into and out of engagement with the disk on the shaft located above the axle.

2. In a cotton-chopper, the combination of a frame, an axle on which said frame is mounted, said axle having ground-wheels thereon, a longitudinally-disposed crank-shaft on the upper portion of the frame, actuating mechanism between the crank-shaft and axle, the said crank-shaft being adjustable to throw the same out of operative relation to said mechanism, chopping devices having bars connected to the crank-shaft and projected laterally from one side of the frame, holders with upper bifu rcated heads in which'the bars on the chopping devices are disposed, and means for vertically adjusting the holders to raise and lower the chopping devices.

3. .In a cotton -chopper, the combination with an axle and driving-wheels, of a longitudinally-disposed shaft operated from the axle, mechanism intermediate of the axle and said longitudinally-disposed shaft, chopping devices having inner terminals connected to the shaft and' projected laterally from one side of the machine, vertically-adj ustable holders to engage said chopping devices, rods having their terminals secured to the holders, and

IOO

IIO

fulcrums through which the said rods are in which the bars are disposed, and means for transversely extended. f adjusting the said holders. Io

4. In a cotton-chopper, the combination In testimony whereof I affix my signature with operating mechanism, of chopping dein presence of two witnesses.

5 vices having bars attached toa portion of said JOHN T. BOYET. operating mechanism and projected laterally Vitnesses:

from one side of the machine, vertically-dis` W. G. LOYD,

posed holders having upper bifurcated heads SCOTT D. DAVIS. 

